Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) deputy governor Innocent Matshe says people are safer keeping their savings in ZiG than in US dollars, after inflation for the local currency dropped to single digits in January 2026.
Speaking at the 2025 Economic Review and 2026 Outlook meeting in Bulawayo, Matshe said the central bank will continue to apply monetary policies aimed at keeping inflation at single-digit levels. He said:
“You are safer saving in ZiG than in USD… Single-digit inflation means a return to enduring stability.
“Month-on-month ZiG inflation averaged around 0.3% since February 2025, reflecting enduring price stability.
“Annual ZiG inflation declined from a peak of 95.8% in July 2025 to 4.1% in January 2026, and the Reserve Bank will continue implementing prudent monetary policies to sustain this trajectory.”
Matshe said Zimbabwe’s foreign currency reserves had risen to US$1.2 billion by December 2025. He said this amount is enough to cover about six times the amount of ZiG reserve money in circulation and roughly twice the value of ZiG deposits.
He added that the ZiG exchange rate has remained stable against the US dollar, averaging 26.
According to the RBZ, the premium on the parallel market was kept below 20% for most of the year. This was helped by foreign currency market interventions worth US$1.34 billion carried out since April 2024.
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